i just swish some hydrogen peroxide around for about a minute after i've brushed my teeth. i hate the taste of most mouthwashes, but the taste of peroxide is relatively neutral, and my mouth feels cleaner longer because there's no weird sweet flavor. i'm not a big fan of traditional minty toothpaste, but the kiss my face formulas are o.k. i like the desert essence ginger toothpaste, and the anise toothpaste from nature's gate.

_________________"rise from the ashes of douchebaggery like a fancy vegan phoenix" - amandabear"I'm pretty sure the moral of this story is: fork pants." - cq

I use Trader Joe's toothpaste. I don't think it's just re-packaged Tom's of Main because the texture is much firmer. I don't know about a good vegan mouth wash. But you are not taking things too far. I use the TJ's stuff because it is vegan and I like the taste (no artificial sweeteners to make it gross) and it has fluoride, which I want.

I have some Tom's mouthwash but yeah, not really much more than minty freshness. I use the Tom's "Whole Care" toothpaste and I thought it tasted like asparagus at first because I was used to really sweet non-vegan brands like Crest or whatever, but now I like the peppermint. Spearmint's OK too.

I use the Jason Sea Fresh toothpaste. It's vegan, and I feel no need for mouthwash after brushing with that stuff, after even the MOST garlicky meal.

ETA: Definitely not taking it too far, toothpaste, mouthwash, etc... are so much easier to find than say the perfect vegan red lipstick! But, the search for all of the above is part of the process. Hydrogen Peroxide is a good suggestion, but it won't give you that minty feeling!

I have some Tom's mouthwash but yeah, not really much more than minty freshness. I use the Tom's "Whole Care" toothpaste and I thought it tasted like asparagus at first because I was used to really sweet non-vegan brands like Crest or whatever, but now I like the peppermint. Spearmint's OK too.

Yeah, Tom's toothpaste was kind of weirdly shocking after decades of Crest, but now I really like it, and the few times I've had to use something else it was just as disconcerting.

Apparently it "neutralizes odor from bad breath germs." That's it? I mean obviously I want my breath to smell awesome, but I also want it to clean my forking teeth.

Wait, isn't that what mouthwash is supposed to do? Your toothbrush and your hand are supposed to clean your teeth. I always thought of mouthwash as just something to give that extra splash of freshness.

solipsistnation wrote:

People get too het up about alcohol in stuff.

I don't really care about alcohol as an ingredient in most things, but from what I understand, using mouthwash with alcohol is counterproductive because the alcohol actually dehydrates your mucus membranes which leads to a dryer mouth which in turn leads to bad breath.

Anyway, back to the question at hand. I've bought Tom's Mouthwash once and found it perfectly satisfying for what I expect of mouthwash (freshening my breath). I'd buy it again. To actually clean my teeth, I brush with Lavera toothpaste (vegan, but I'm not sure it's available in North America), and use dental sticks between my teeth (I have some gaps that make flossing less efficient). I guess it all depends on what you're expecting of a product.

_________________I ate the shiitake out of inappropriateness. - Hollie

The only reason I use mouthwash is to help out my teeth, so I get one with fluoride. Otherwise I could just brush my teeth (I use Tom's Whole Care) or chew some gum to "freshen my breath." I use The Natural Dentist's fluoride mouthwash--their products are vegan.

(JonnyWoop, They have the mouthwash at Cambridge Naturals in Porter Square if you're interested.)

Apparently it "neutralizes odor from bad breath germs." That's it? I mean obviously I want my breath to smell awesome, but I also want it to clean my forking teeth.

Wait, isn't that what mouthwash is supposed to do? Your toothbrush and your hand are supposed to clean your teeth. I always thought of mouthwash as just something to give that extra splash of freshness.

Apparently it "neutralizes odor from bad breath germs." That's it? I mean obviously I want my breath to smell awesome, but I also want it to clean my forking teeth.

Wait, isn't that what mouthwash is supposed to do? Your toothbrush and your hand are supposed to clean your teeth. I always thought of mouthwash as just something to give that extra splash of freshness.

If you aren't against the alcohol in mouthwash thing, I use Dr Tichenors, which you get in concentrate and then dilute. So I use an old peroxide bottle and mix it with 3 parts peroxide and 2 parts water, then add in a dropperful of myrrh (good against gum) disease I read somewhere of nother. I might try diluting the alcohol more though. I usually just splash it on my toothbrush though.

The peroxide is a whitener too.

_________________Evolved a vascular system, so I went from bryophyte to lycophyte.

I dunno about their mouthwash, but I like their toothpaste. They have the stuff with fluoride and the stuff without fluoride. I prefer the kids flavors (silly strawberry specifically). I miss the cinnamon flavor, they don't make it anymore.

For mouthwash, I use Act or a generic Act. I doubt its veganness, but I like a nice fluoride mouthrinse. I used to use Biotene for dry mouth (several years ago), and I recently saw on the label something like "contains milk and egg derivites." Ugh, in mouthwash? Gross. I think it is the enzymes. Or something?